An Insight Into Nymphs

This idea of the nymphs being part of my short film was not only taken from my love of the elves in Tolkien's novels but also from the Greek Mythology of the nymphs.

Different from the goddesses in Greek Mythology, nymphs are generally regarded as divine spirits who control and shape nature, bound to one particular place. Interestingly the Ancient Greek belief in nymphs survived in many parts of Greece into the early years of the twentieth century. This had a large impact on the development of my story due to the perhaps lingering belief in such stories.

Nymphs are supposedly meant to isolate themselves from human interaction but were known to encounter lone travellers or be seen dancing or bathing in a stream or pool. The nymphs seemingly had mystical abilities with some being known to appear in a whirlwind. An encounter with a nymph for humans was also considered dangerous as it could bring dumbness, besotted infatuation, madness or stroke. Nymphs were also believed to kidnap children which can be seen in other mythology as the job of fairies or pixies.

However, nymphs are most commonly thought of as water spirits. This therefor led me to look into more detail at dryads which are woodland spirits or woodland nymphs. The word "dryad" comes from the word "drys" meaning oak and dryads are specifically associated with being the nymphs of oak trees. The oak is associated as the tree of England and therefor fits in well with my coursework being set in England. They were considered to be very shy creatures, except around the goddess Artemis.

There are very little modern interpretations of dryads in fiction or in filmography aside from their role in 'The Chronicles of Narnia' where they are seen various parts of the story by Lucy Pevensie.